Current of fast moving air in the upper levels of the atmosphere
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| Jet Stream
Primary Points Current of fast moving air in the upper levels of the atmosphere In the US there is two Jet streams (Subtropical Jet and Polar Jet) Polar jet is boundary between warm air mass and cold air mass Jet streams are usually found between 10-15 km (6-9 miles) above Earth’s surface Jet Streams can steer storms Airplanes fly faster when traveling typically eastward on the Jet stream Jet Streaks are the faster winds embedded into the Jet Stream Stronger during the winter months because of the bigger temperature contrast Jet stream shifts Northward during summer and Southward in the winter Zonal pattern is a straighter jet stream while meridional contains more curves Trivia and Stories A volcano eruption helped discover the Jet stream Used to be called the equatorial smoke stream American pilot given some credit to discovering Jet stream Flyers during World War II noticed tailwinds in excess of 100 mph during flights Sound Bites The sky’s River Hop on the jet stream for a faster ride home Sluggish Jetstream due to poor temperature contrast
Forms at the bottom of cumulonimbus cloud (thunderstorm) Can be dangerous to life and property Most tornadoes have wind speeds of less than 110 mile/hour Extreme twisters can exceed 300 miles/hour Types of tornadoes include waterspouts, dust devils, and fire whirl In the US Tornado alley is where the mass majority of tornadoes occur Tornadoes have been observed on every continent except Antarctica Can have a wide range of colors depending on where the tornado develops Lightning may not be present during a tornado Trivia and Stories Enhanced Fujita Scale was introduced in 2007 to assess damage more closely Some people have seen inside tornadoes Usually a tornado matches the color of the ground US averages 1200 tornadoes every year Sound Bites Twisted up chaos after tornadoes tear through Off the scale winds due to violent vortex Sources of Additional Info http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/ http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/education/svrwx101/tornadoes/ Hurricanes Primary Points Measured using the Saffir-Simpson scale Winds from hurricanes can be over 160 miles/hour Atlantic’s Hurricane season peaks from mid-August to late October Atlantic Ocean averages five to six hurricanes per year Hurricanes are fed energy from the warm seas 90 percent of all hurricane deaths result from storm surges Hurricanes can also spawn tornadoes The eye of the hurricane is relatively calm The strongest winds take place just outside the wall Hurricanes weaken rapidly over land Hurricanes forecasts are not as accurate for farther out tracks
Medicanes (similar to hurricanes) for over the Mediterranean Sea Hurricanes were first given names in the19th century by Clement Wragge Hurricanes rotate clockwise in the southern Hemisphere Sound Bites Storm surge strikes coast from destructive Hurricane Raging winds wait outside the eye. Sources of Additional Info http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ http://coast.noaa.gov/hurricanes/ Radar/Doppler Radar Primary Points Radar is used to detect precipitation in the atmosphere Modern radars are pulse-Doppler Radars Can be used to determine the structure of storms Dual-Pol radar can detect shape and size of precipitation Sends pulses of microwave radiation Radar pulses spread out as they move away from the radar station The duration of the “listening” cycle is about a millisecond long Used in different modes to adjust to outside conditions. (Clear Air Mode) Colors on radar is measured in reflectivity or dBZ
Radars can detect insects, buildings, and birds Radars have a velocity product, which can detect winds
Radar detects detailed hook echo to signify tornado Sources of Additional Info http://www.wunderground.com/weather-radar/united-states/ http://www.srh.noaa.gov/radar/radinfo/radinfo.html El Niño/La Niña Primary Points El Nino and La Nina are opposite phases of ENSO (El Nino-Southern Oscillation) These phases take place in the east-central Equatorial Pacific El Nino is the warm phase when water temperatures are warmer than average La Nina is the cold phase when water temperatures are cooler than average These phases typically last 9 to 12 months Phases begin to form between June and August Peak strength is reached between December/April and decay between May/July ENSO phases occur every 3 to 5 years North America weather conditions can be affected due to ENSO phases Not associated with Global Warming Trivia and Stories El Nino means The Little Boy or Spanish Child in Spanish Fishermen off of South America first recognized El Nino in the 1600s La Nina means The Little Girl in Spanish La Nina seasons usually mean a more active Hurricane Season Sound Bites Elusive El Nino arrives It’s time to fire up the Super El Nino chatter again La Nina conditions spin up springtime Twisters
The almanac is right less than half of the time NOAA is a more reliable source to look at Long-Range Forecasts NOAA uses Below Normal, Above Normal, Equal Chances for Long-Range NOAA predicts Temperature and Precipitation for Long-Range Monthly is more accurate due to it being closer in time Long-Range is Much more inaccurate than Short-Range Computer Models are used to create Long-Term Forecasts Private Sector may create their own Long-Range forecasts
Many people rely on Farmer’s Almanac Sound Bites Rely on Long-range for reference Meteorologists LOL at Long-range Almanac Forecasts Sources of Additional Info http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/forecasts/ http://theweatherwiz.com/ Thunderstorms Primary Points Occur in cumulonimbus clouds Sometimes accompanied by strong winds, heavy rain, and hail Thunderstorms may line up in a series or rain band known as a squall line Thunderstorms may also rotate (Super cells) Can produce tornadoes Result from rapid upward movement of warm, moist air Can occur inside warm, moist air masses or along fronts Can form and develop in any particular geographic location Threaten life and property Damage from thunderstorms is mostly from hailstones, flash flooding, downbursts Maximum daytime heating occurs at night allowing for convection
Sometimes thunderstorms can build large enough to go into the stratosphere Can produce softball sized hail
Rumble of thunder find some cover Sources of Additional Info https://www.nssl.noaa.gov/education/svrwx101/thunderstorms/ http://www.lightningmaps.org/realtime Climate Change Primary Points Change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns for an extended period Referred to as global warming El Nino does not represent climate change Climate change is mainly caused from humans actions to pollute the atmosphere Carbon Dioxide and Water vapor are the main causes of the warming Earth General Circulation models used to link causes of climate change Carbon Dioxide continues to increase Every time you drive a car you are releasing carbon dioxide The Greenhouse effect occurs when gases are trapped in the Earths Atmosphere The melting of ice sheets is one thing climate change is affecting Warmer global temperatures can actually bring more snow to the Northeast US Ozone hole is formed from chlorine in the form of CFCs in the atmosphere Trivia and Stories Past couple winters were colder for eastern US not Western Glaciers are most sensitive to Climate Change Sound Bites Climate Change Crippling America Polar bears running out of room due to Climate Change Sources of Additional Info http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/ http://climate.nasa.gov/ Winter Precipitation Primary Points Snow can fall above freezing temps because overlying air may be colder and the snow does not have enough time to melt when it reaches the ground Snow, Sleet, Freezing Rain, Graupel is types of precipitation Freezing rain can occur when the surface is below freezing and the air is above freezing Wintry Precipitation can cause hazardous driving conditions Snow can have different shapes and sizes 10 inches of snow is equivalent to 1 inch of rain Snow can disappear with temperatures below freezing due to sublimation Sublimation is the process when solid turn into a gas Snow is the hardest to forecast Snow requires a column of air that is at or below freezing
The largest snowflake was 15 inches wide Sound Bites Winter Whiteout No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn Mixed bag of precipitation
Folklore
Only some folklore is true Folklore began because back in the day there was no numerical data Only instrument of reliability was human experience Folklore refers to mid-latitude regions Red sky at night sailors, delight; Red sky in the morning sailors take warning Ring around sun or moon precipitation coming in No weather is ill if the wind be still (False if there may be a calm before storm) Groundhog is popular with folklore but is a false type of folklore Decreasing pressure causes aches and pains and may signify storms on the way
Folklore may only be useful in certain seasons Sound Bites When sounds travel far and wide, a stormy day will betide When clouds look like black smoke, A wise man will put on his cloak Sources of Additional Info http://www.stormfax.com/wxfolk.htm http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rnk/Newsletter/Fall_2010/folklore.html Lake (Sea)-Effect Snow/Rain Primary Points Needs a warm lake, cold air, little shear, and location of where it falls depends on wind Size of the bands depend on the shape of the body of water and prevailing wind Snowfall may exceed 5 inches an hour May not be snowing at all with clear skies a few miles away Rain is also possible in spring and fall Sea effect also occurs such as Cape Cod Bay and Chesapeake Bay A band can stay in one location for several hours dropping several feet of snow Snow bands can be 20 to 30 miles wide and extend 100 miles inland from lake Ice cover stops or decreases snow activity Ice cuts off the warm moist air needed to produce lake effect Trivia and Stories Thundersnow (Lightning in the snow) can occur with lake effect Another area of extreme lake effect is in Japan Sound Bites Lake-effect bands make the skiers dance Snow piles up due to Unrelenting Lake-Effect Sources of Additional Info http://www.noaa.gov/features/02_monitoring/lakesnow.html http://scijinks.jpl.nasa.gov/lake-snow/ Optical Phenomena Primary Points Observable events resulting from the interaction of light and matter Rainbows form when there is sun and rain Occurs when light is refracted by the water droplets Rainbows can be seen in the snow as well Sun dogs create a rainbow around the sun and also around the moon at times Sun dogs are visible when sunlight is refracting off ice crystals high up in the atmosphere Mirages occur when light rays are bent to produce a displaced image of distant objects Light rays bend downward when entering layers of cooler air Rainbows can be full circles
A rainbow cannot be physically approached Mirages sometimes look like puddles to the observer when it is really light being bent from the object
Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud Sources of Additional Info http://scijinks.jpl.nasa.gov/rainbow/ http://www.atoptics.co.uk/rayshad.htm Heat Index/Apparent Temperature Primary Points Index that combines air temperature and relative humidity Used to determine the human-perceived equivalent temperature Also known as the “felt air temperature” Heat index is assuming shady conditions and light wind Higher relative humidity keeps the body from evaporating sweat, which cools us Some people may mistake when the atmosphere is humid or dry Used to determine how dangerous it is to be outside
Canada uses a humidex which is similar to the heat index Heat stroke is imminent when heat index is above 54 Celsius (130 Fahrenheit)
It’s not the heat it’s the humidity Sources of Additional Info http://www.srh.noaa.gov/ama/?n=heatindex http://www.weatherimages.org/data/heatindex.html Satellite Imagery/Data Primary Points The three main types of satellites images are visible, water vapor, and infrared Two main types of satellites are geostationary and polar orbiting Geostationary rotates with the earth Polar orbiting orbits along lines of longitude passing the poles Visible images can only be viewed during the night (unless a lot of moonlight Is present) Infrared can be viewed 24/7 Infrared measures the amount of radiation from cloud tops Water vapor measures the amount of moisture in the atmosphere Satellites can also be used to forecast (future Skew-T’s) Satellites can help predict climate change Trivia and Stories The first weather satellite was launched in 1959 The first successful weather satellite was launched in 1960 Visible satellites can use moonlight to see nighttime images
Consider meteorologists to be pilgrims before weather satellites Sources of Additional Info http://weather.msfc.nasa.gov/GOES/ http://www.noaa.gov/satellites.html Wind Chill Primary Points Attempts to quantify how much energy is being lost from bare human skin Originally Formulated by Antarctic researcher Paul Siple in the 1930s Siple hung plastic bags of warm water in various temperature/wind combos New wind chill values were implemented in 2001 New Formula used data from real human skin and modern heat transfer eqns. New wind chill temps are notably “warmer” than the original values Useful for general guidelines related to dangers of wind-related heat loss Shortcomings: does not account for sunshine, humidity, individual health Shortcomings: confusion with actual air temperatures Shortcomings: only applies to humans, not animals or automobiles Trivia and Stories Siple grew up in Erie, PA, was an eagle scout and ‘frat boy’ Siple coined the term wind chill factor Siple was opposed to wind chill temperature (wrong units) –“science geek” Canada now uses the same scale…before 2001 it was different Sound Bites New Scale required some people to “freeze their face for science” Wind chill “allows meteorologist to inflict further pain in bad weather” Wind chill “further clutters the already cluttered world of weather info” SOURCES OF ADDITIONAL INFO http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/windchill/images/wind-chill-brochure.pdf Slate magazine WIND CHILL BLOWS: http://www.slate.com/id/2207326/ Directory: uploads uploads -> 587 Return function, r i(X) r i(0) r i(1) r i(2) r i(3) 1 0 2 4 6 Thermal Station, I 2 0 1 5 6 3 0 3 5 6 10 uploads -> Department of science and humanities department of mathematics part-a questions and answers uploads -> The Case Against the nypd’s Quota-Driven ‘Broken Windows’ Policing What Is It? uploads -> For want of a nail uploads -> Ownership Models There are two different types of ownership models uploads -> Police Militarization uploads -> City of rising star regular meting thursday, july 14, 2016 uploads -> Township of winfield uploads -> Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act of 2014 uploads -> The Black Panther Party’s Ten-Point Program What We Want Now! Download 43.99 Kb. Share with your friends:
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